White House lifts tariffs on some Canadian goods as midterm elections loom

The Trump administration is lifting some of its 50% tariffs on Canadian goods two weeks before the midterm elections, after a Republican candidate in a key Senate race said she had lobbied for the change. Starting on 30 October, tariffs will be eased on products including “plywood sheets, some paper products, certain machinery and refrigeration equipment,” the White House said on Friday.

Republican Senator Susan Collins, who is in a tight race to keep her seat in Maine, first announced the exemptions, saying they would help her state’s agriculture industry. The US imposed a 50% levy on $20bn (£15bn) of Canadian goods after trade talks between the two countries collapsed in August. Maine Senator Susan Collins is seeking to keep her seat in November’s midterm elections Canada has imposed a series of countermeasures against US tariffs, which Prime Minister Mark Carney said were “necessary to protect our workers”.

Last month, Carney matched the US tariffs “dollar for dollar” after the breakdown in talks. Trump had imposed them for what he called “unequal treatment” of US cars, dairy and alcohol. The White House said while tariffs would be lifted from some items, including some packing crates and boxes, they would be introduced on other items such as carpets and “waste products”.

It said the action reflected President Trump’s “continued efforts to defend American workers and ensure fair trade”. “President Trump continues to address Canada’s discriminatory treatment of US commerce,” White House spokesman Matthew Middleton said. In a statement to the BBC, Canada’s internal trade minister Dominic LeBlanc said: “While we assess these latest steps, Canada stands ready to work constructively and in good faith towards a more mutually beneficial trading relationship that respects Canada’s interests.” The White House’s announcement comes less than a fortnight before the US midterm elections, which will determine whether Trump’s Republican Party or Democrats will control Congress, impacting the remaining two years of his term.

Collins said she had repeatedly asked senior Trump officials for tariff relief and that she would “continue working directly with administration officials to seek additional relief and encourage a broader trade agreement with Canada, our neighbour, ally, and largest trading partner”. She wrote on X that the tariff exemptions were on products that were “crucial to Maine’s agricultural industries, including blueberry, potato, apple, and seaweed producers”.

Collins’ Democratic challenger, Troy Jackson, responded: “Trump’s trade wars have made life harder and more expensive for Mainers. Susan Collins enabled this chaos, voted to confirm the people behind it, and now wants credit for bringing a cup of water to put out the fire.” Maine borders the Canadian provinces New Brunswick and Quebec. Its economy, as well as that of other border states, is deeply linked to Canada and they have felt the effects of the months-long trade war.

Michigan lawmaker Mike Rogers, also a Republican, has called on Trump to end the standoff after spending months supporting the policy in recent advertisements airing in his trade-reliant state. Also on Friday, President Donald Trump said Canada was “working very hard” on a ⁠trade ​deal with the US. Carney, for his part, said that Canada was open to a mutually beneficial deal, but is willing to wait it out.

“We could sign it this afternoon if the US were there. If it has to be months from now or longer than that, or another administration, before a proper deal comes into place, we will do that,” he said on Friday, according to Canadian broadcaster CBC. LeBlanc confirmed on Thursday that a delegation met with members of the Canada-United States Economic Relations Advisory Committee – the ninth meeting since April 2026.

The committee members discussed the ongoing impact of US tariffs in Canada.